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Pay off CC or collections first?

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Anonymous
Not applicable

Pay off CC or collections first?

My girlfriend owes $3k on a capitol one card and around $2k in collections for old medical bills. She recently got a better paying job and can afford to put down a good chunk down so my question is, should she start knocking out the credit card first then save to pay the collections in full?

Message 1 of 6
5 REPLIES 5
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Pay off CC or collections first?

Is $3,000 the limit on the card ? Like is it maxed out ? I would say the CC first either way because it's an active account on her credit and will help her utilization. If the medical bills are old and not impacting her legally or credit wise, I would hold off. 

 

Take care of the active accounts first Smiley Happy 

Message 2 of 6
Anonymous
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Re: Pay off CC or collections first?

+1 on paying off the current debt, rather than the older debt.

 

The credit card balance can turn ugly at any time if it is not managed properly,

so best to pay that down, or pay it off in full.

 

Then work on the medical debt.

Since it is in collections, perhaps it can be negotiated for a lower balance agreement

Message 3 of 6
SouthJamaica
Mega Contributor

Re: Pay off CC or collections first?


@Anonymous wrote:

My girlfriend owes $3k on a capitol one card and around $2k in collections for old medical bills. She recently got a better paying job and can afford to put down a good chunk down so my question is, should she start knocking out the credit card first then save to pay the collections in full?


In order to answer the question we need to know what her limit is on the Cap One card, and what other revolving accounts she has, including the limits and the balances if any.


Total revolving limits 569520 (505320 reporting) FICO 8: EQ 699 TU 696 EX 682




Message 4 of 6
Shooting-For-800
Senior Contributor

Re: Pay off CC or collections first?

age of charge offs?

cap one current?

if so, pay cap one first then the accts that have already hurt your credit.

if more than 5 years old, I would let them fall off.

Rebuild started in 2014  -  $100k unsecured credit in 2017  -  $500k unsecured credit in 2024.

DON'T WORK FOR CREDIT CARDS ... MAKE CREDIT CARDS WORK FOR YOU!



Message 5 of 6
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Pay off CC or collections first?

In summary, we'd need to know:

 

*  Is your girlfriend open to the option of never paying the medical debt?  If so, we'd need to know the statute of limitations and when the debt became delinquent.

 

*  Amounts owed and credit limits on each of her cards.

Message 6 of 6
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